In recent years, planar-light-emitting panels, represented by organic EL panels, have much been considered as light sources that substitute for incandescent lamps and fluorescent lamps. Much research on the planar-light-emitting panels has been made.
The organic EL panel includes an organic EL tile housed in a housing, such as a bezel (frame, case), or held on a translucent plate, and the organic EL tile includes an organic EL element, which is small in thickness and emits planer light, formed on a translucent substrate.
The organic EL tile is constituted by an organic EL element that forms an anode layer, a cathode layer opposing the anode layer, and an organic EL element therebetween on a base material, such as a glass substrate, a transparent resin film, and a transparent metal sheet. Hereupon one or both of the anode layer and the cathode layer are translucent, and the organic EL element is composed of laminated organic functional layers. Generally, in the organic EL tile, the organic EL element described above is sealed in a sealing glass cap having a recess, or sealed by a sealing film formed on the organic EL element. The sealing film is formed of, for example, an inorganic insulating film such as oxidized and/or nitrided silicon, or an organic insulating film such as an acrylic insulating film.
When power is supplied across the electrode layers, electrically excited electrons and positive holes in the organic EL element recombine and the organic EL tile emits light. The organic EL tile is small in thickness, and emits planar light.
Since the planar-light-emitting tiles, which are represented by the organic EL tile described above, an LED tile including a planar-light-emitting element of LEDs arranged on a plane, and an LED combined with a diffusion plate, emit planar light, they are used as a planar light source.
To use the planar-light-emitting tile as a light source, an external power source or the like is connected to the tile, and a printed circuit board (PCB) such as a flexible printed circuit (FPC) and a rigid printed circuit (RPC) is used to supply power to the planar-light-emitting element.
A mounting structure disclosed in Patent Document 1 is a structure for mounting such a planar-light-emitting panel on a wall or the like.
The mounting structure disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a mounting device for electrically connecting a commercial power source to an organic EL panel. The mounting device includes a base portion attached to a surface opposite the organic EL panel that constitutes a ceiling plate, and a connector portion engageable with a power supply portion of the organic EL panel. In the mounting structure disclosed in Patent Document 1, the power supply portion of the organic EL panel engages with the connector portion of the mounting device to be held in a mounting position that is supported by the ceiling plate.